New times as good as old
by doc boy
Summary: Four years after the start of his journey, Ash tries for the Indigo League again, unaware that old friendships and perhaps something more, lay just around the corner...


New times as good as old

I do not own Pokémon

It's been four years since he started his journey. Friendships have been made, and have fallen apart. First, he met Misty. She fished him out of the river when he tried escaping the birds chasing him. She followed him around for a while, and during that time, they became friends. She was very sad when she had to leave and so was he. Only years later, did he realize that she liked him in a romantic way, but sadly for her, he only saw her as her best friend, nothing more. Then came the Hoenn region. The moment he saw May, he felt butterflies in his stomach. He was touched by her concern for Pikachu, after the accident with Team Rocket and her bike. She too had followed him, but because she wanted to, not to get herself a new bike out of him. She too traveled along with him for a while and they became the best of friends. As much as he liked her, he was still his dense self, so he did not realize that she liked him too and she seemed to miss his signs as well. So their signs were falling upon deaf ears. He was sad when she had to leave, but he knew she had her own dreams to fulfill, so he wouldn't want to deprive her of that. Before she left, he did something he never dared do to a girl before. He hugged her. She returned the embrace, with that, boarded the boat, and departed from the bay as well as his life.

Ash was a little sullen for a while after coming home, sad he will never see her again. But being the strong boy that he is, after a while he pulled himself together and prepared for his next trip.

Things seemed to repeat themselves as the Misty formula from then on. The girls he traveled with seemed to like him but he only saw them as friends. When he almost won the Kalos league but lost within the fraction of a hair, he was bummed out for a while. By then he was fourteen. Times sure has flown by since he started as an inept kid four years ago. Since he was at home now, he was feeling rather nostalgic about his first trip. So he decided to take another try at the Indigo League. So the next morning, he went over to Professor Oak's lab and signed up. Two days later, he was back on the road again. The road he knew all too well. He reminisced as he passed by the locations that raised old memories. Like when he first caught his Caterpie, or when he first met his buddy Brock, or when he released his Butterfree… the boy teared up a bit as he recalled his first Pokémon as he bid him farewell. He hoped this his little friend was happy wherever he was, with his new or perhaps now, old family… God, has it been four years since then? He Butterfree must have grandchildren by now… or at least a few children to say the least.

The following year went by quickly. He was so overwhelmed by the memories and feelings of déjà vu flooding him that he barely noticed how happy Misty was when he showed up at her gym for a rematch. Needless to say that she was delighted to see him and supported him all the way this time around. She now knew he didn't feel the same way about her as she did about him, so her feelings for the boy have rather diminished since then. She was still happy to see him; he was her best friend after all…

When he won his badge, he thanked Misty and bid her farewell.

Once on the road again, his thoughts returned to his recent reunion with his old friend Brock. After defeating him easily this time with his Squirtle, Brock insisted that he'd stay over for lunch. Ash gladly agreed. He could never say no to Brock's food even without having to smell it…

Before he knew it, a year has gone by and now it was time to face the Kanto league again.

As he expected, the beginning was easy. By the time he reached his last limit, the top sixteen, he was nervous. His opponent was a guy named Tommy. A little older than Ash but just as talented. When Ash defeated him and broke his record, he felt cheerfully over the moon. Little did he knew, that there was a certain girl in the crowd, cheering for him with a silent prayer that he would for once earn his well-deserved victory. With each battle he won, the mysterious girl, followed him with her eyes as he walked away from the battlefield, as her face was as red as her bandana. The last time he saw her she had a change of style. Now she was back to her original outfit, which quite frankly, was her favorite. Little by little, Ash defeated his opponents one by one and he was getting increasingly excited and confident. That's not to say he was getting cocky. After learning from his past mistakes, he tried to keep his ego in check during situations like these. Finally, came his last battle before battling the elite four. He walked into the stadium and waited for his opponent. When his name was announced and he saw the boy in front of him, Ash couldn't believe his eyes, and luck for that matter. He never thought he would see him again, let alone get a rematch against him in the same league he lost to him in four year ago.

Richie.

Ash smiled at his fortunate yet nostalgic turn of events. The boy in front of him didn't seem to recall him so he didn't say anything for now and decided to poke fun at him later.

Soon the battle began.

"And Ash sends out his Pikachu and he is ready to fight. Let's see what will Richie send out… it's his own Pikachu! An electrifying double match of electric mice! Let's see where this goes!" exclaimed the announcer.

Ash was surprised that his own Pikachu didn't give away his identity to his old childhood friend. The two Pikachus seemed to recognize each other, but did not let that get in their way.

"Pikachu, use Volt Tackle!" exclaimed Ash.

"Sparky, use quick attack to dodge it!"

The opposing yellow mouse dodged the attack and then head-butted Pikachu. Pikachu was unfazed by the attack, and rose right up. The two mice continued to fight until Sparky was the first one to go down. Next was a battle between Cahrizard from Ash's team and a Blastoise from Richie's. Despite being out-matched, Ash won. Unfortunately, for him, he lost the next two rounds. In the next round, Ash won. Soon came the last round. Each trainer had one last Pokémon left. Whoever's Pokémon would stay standing within the next half hour would be this year's champion. It was Ash's Treecko versus Richie's Magmar. To everyone it seemed that Ash was doomed. His grass Pokémon took quite a beating. He was with his nose in the ground and was almost called out when Treecko went back on its feet. By now, both Pokémon were exhausted. After more tackling, fire blowing and razer leafs attacks, the two Pokémon stood in front of each other panting, staring each other down into a war of attrition, to see who is gonna blink first. After a few seconds of serious tension, Magmar fell backwards first and was unconscious. The referee raised the green flag.

"Magmar is unable to battle. Victory goes to Ash and he is this year's champion!" he exclaimed and the crowd went bezerk.

Richie returned his Pokémon to his ball and approached Ash solemnly to shake his hand, and yet he still didn't recognize him. Ash shook his old friend's hand.

"You did good Richie." He said and the boy smiled.

"Thanks, you too Ash." He said and Ash smiled firmly at him. Now it was time to make his joke and settle an old bet that time forgot.

"I guess we know who the better trainer is now." he smirked.

"Guess so. Don't let it go to your head though."

"That's not what I'm saying. Being the best trainer in the galaxy is great, but it's not as big as being in the best trainer in the universe," teased Ash. Dumbfounded, Richie looked at him surprisingly.

"What are you talking about? And why does that sound familiar?"

An old forgotten memory flashed into the front of Richie's mind like a wall full of bricks.

It was four years ago. It first his first time in a Pokémon league, and he befriended a boy named Ash Ketchum, just like the one in front of him now. They both dreamed of being Pokémon masters. The night, before their battle against each other, they camped out in their sleeping bags and chatted before bed.

"I'm the best trainer in the world." Declared Ash.

Richie chuckled.

"Yeah? Well I'm the best trainer in the galaxy."

Ash laughed.

"Well I'm the best trainer in the universe." Both kids laughed.

The wall receded from the front of Richie's mind at light speed and returned to the dormant residence of his subconscious.

"It was you." He said softly. Finally realizing who he was and recognizing his old friend.

"You were the same Ash I battled here four years ago. You were a good friend of mine…," said Richie finally beginning to process it.

"That's right. Took you a while to figure it out."

"Yeah it did. Sorry I didn't recognize you at first. I've been through so much over the last four years."

"Me too."

"You did look familiar though. I did remember you; I just didn't think you and that guy I met four years ago were the same person."

"Times change."

"Yeah."

Richie smiled.

"Well I can promise you one thing. Next we battle _I'm_ gonna be the best one in the universe."

Ash smiled.

"Well I'm gonna be the best one in the multi universe. Waddya got to say about that?"

Richie laughed out loud.

"My, I didn't know you were such a nerd."

"Times change." Ash repeated himself and they both burst out laughing.

"Yeah right. I'll see you around Ash. Congrats on the victory." Said Richie and shook his hand. After the banter was over, Ash was presented with his trophy, and presented it to the crowd and they went wild.

Afterward, Ash was sitting in the dressing room, polishing his trophy, which was already clean to begin with, but he enjoyed doing it. So he didn't notice when someone walked into his room.

"You missed a spot." Said the voice.

"What?" Ash said absentmindedly. He turned around and his eyes widened in shock. Before him stood a familiar looking girl. She had brown hair and blue sapphire eyes and a red outfit.

"May?" he asked.

"Hello Ash. Long time no see…"

Ash blinked, stalling to process that his old friend he secretly loved for years was standing right in front of him. Finally, he let out a laugh.

"May!" he called out, darted into her arms, and brought her into a bear hug.

"May it's so good to see you! I missed you so much…," he said happily and May smiled.

"It's good to see you too Ash, but can you please let go of me? I can't breathe, you're crushing me."

Startled, he let her go.

"Sorry May." He said shyly and she accepted.

"What are you doing here?" he asked.

"I'm just finishing my competing here in Kanto and I learned you were gonna try out for the league, so I thought I'd come by and cheer for you."

Ash smiled.

"Thanks May."

She beamed back at him.

"Sure."

"So how did your contests go?"

"They went well. Tomorrow's my final contest."

"That's great May! Who will you be competing against?"

"Drew."

"I'm not surprised."

"Yeah but I'm gonna win this time. That jerk has it coming."

"Even if you lose you're still a winner to me May. You always have been."

She smiled coyly with a blush on her face.

"Thanks Ash that's very sweet." He nodded in return.

The next evening, May had her contest, and even though it was a close call, she defeated Drew and fulfilled her dream of becoming Top Coordinator. As a treat and a way to celebrate, Ash took her out for pizza. They ate joyfully and then had ice cream. He offered May to stay by his house for a few days and she gladly complied. They walked to his house, with their bellies full of pizza and ice cream. Both being big eaters, this was quite an achievement. Ash turned to look at her as they walked.

"You know I really missed you May." He said happily.

"I missed you too Ash." She said sweetly.

"Do you know what you're gonna do now that you fulfilled your dream?"

"I didn't fulfill my dream." He said.

She blinked.

"You didn't? But you just won the Pokémon league."

"Yes but I only beat the other trainers. To officially become a Pokémon Master, I need to defeat the Elite Four."

"Well are you gonna do it?"

"You bet," he affirmed. She smiled.

"Well I'll be behind you all the way."

"I'm sure you will. You always have been." He smiled as they walked into his house and walked up the stairs. Before going to their separate rooms, May leaned forward and kissed Ash on the cheek.

"Goodnight Ashy." She said sweetly and turned to her room. Ash's face caught fire with blush and his smile was so wide, his lips were about to go beyond their physical limit to try to contain it. Nevertheless, Ash fell asleep that night faster than his blush could go away.

Over the next week, Ash let his Pokémon rest for the next few battles. They were tough, they were close, they were painful, they were anything you would expect out of the Elite Four. But Ash kept on going. When the last battle with the fourth member of the Elite was over Ash's ears absorbed the words he never thought he would hear.

"Pikachu wins! The all new Pokémon Master is Ash Ketchum from Pallet town!" he called out and everyone went wild.

Ash was so shocked and so emotional he teared up a bit. His mother, old friends, even his father rushed into the stadium to congratulate him. Soon he found his vision obscured by brown hair and his sinuses filled with the scent of vanilla and strawberries.

"You did it Ash! You did it! You fulfilled your dream and become a Pokémon Master!" squealed May, who was ecstatic.

"I sure did May… I sure did…"

That night Ash had a party at his house and all his family and friends were invited. They stayed up until one in the morning until the last guest had left. Finally, it was quiet again in the Ketchum residence. Delia kissed her son goodnight again and gave him a congratulating hug.

"I'm so proud of you Ash." She said happily.

"Thanks Mom." She said and kissed him on the forehead.

"I'll see you tomorrow okay?" she said

""Sure Mom." He said and she went upstairs to her room.

Now it was only Ash and May downstairs. Ash walked over to the stereo machine, placed in one of the records, and started playing it. Soon a soft pop song filled the room.

 _"I will be the very best, like no one ever was…"_

He extended his hand to May.

"May I have this dance, May?"

May's eyes glimmered with joy. She never thought this day would come. She took his hand in her own.

 _"To catch them is my real test, to train them is my cause…"_ came the singer's voice as they started to slow dance in each other's arms in his living room.

 _"I will travel across the land, searching far and wide…"_

The two teenagers felt those words applied to them more than ever. Ash opened his mouth to speak.

"You know what I just realized?"

"What's that Ash?"

"That all this time, I haven't been searching for all the Pokémon, I've been searching for my one and only love."

She smirked; she knew where he was going with this but decided to have some fun with him first.

"Did you find her?"

He smiled, happy to go along with the joke.

"Oh yeah…"

 _"I know it's my destiny…"_

She smiled.

"Do I know her?"

Ash pretended to think for a moment.

"I would think so, yeah…."

 _"Oh, you're my best friend, in a world we must defend…"_

"What does she look like?" she teased.

"She has blue sapphire eyes, a beautiful smile, and face and she has V shaped brown hair."

"Sounds like a pretty gal. I'm starting to feel jealous. Funny thing is, she also loves a boy, who has brown chocolate eyes, dark raven hair, his nice, kind and supportive and he just became the Pokémon Master of Kanto."

"Sounds like a cool guy. I'm starting to feel jealous too. Should I?"

May smirked.

"No Ashy boy… you shouldn't because it's you…," she said and leaned in to kiss the boy she loved on the lips as they kissed tenderly. She wrapped her arms around his neck as he had his around her waist as they slow danced and the music from the song was drowned and dissolved away in their happiness, elation and full of emotion moment they both shared. Once the need for air became inescapable, they both parted and smiled into each other's eyes. Brown met blue and they liked what they saw, especially what was behind the eyes, that's where the heart and soul was and they loved it. They loved each other. They kissed briefly again and Ash wrapped his arms around her as she rested in his arms.

"I love you Ash…," she said dreamily.

"I love you too May…," he said wholeheartedly.

"Hey Ash?"

"Hmm?"

"Would you be my traveling companion again?" she asked hopefully and he smiled at her.

"I already am…." He said warmly, she smiled, and leaned upward to kiss him again and rested in his trusty embrace as he continued to rock her in his arms back and forth, as Ash's new trophies glistered in the background and the stereo went silent…

The end…

So there it is. Hope you guys liked it.

Reviews are most welcome…

Peace out…


End file.
